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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. tube — the underground
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. face — to point toward
  5. face — part of the head
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. chest — of your body
  9. spring — of water
  10. current — happening now
  11. date — the fruit
  12. current — of water
  13. face — to confront
  14. tube — a container
  15. spring — a coil
  16. chest — of your body
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — an injury
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. current — electric
  22. chest — a box
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. spring — the season

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com